Adisankara Poem by Indira Renganathan

Luminous on the snowy Himalaya
The effulgence of Kaladi Kerala
The beacon light up there spirited
From south of Bharath enlightened

Bestowed the blest Sivaguru and Aryamba
Lord Siva born to them, great Sankara
Not an ordinary child but divine
Did he younger resort to be a sanyasin

Would a mother consent? Aryamba didn't
Yet she soon couldn't but consent
Destiny, a crocodile to Sankara threw a life-threat
Relieved him demanding he be an ascetic asset

Thence Aryamba let Sankara renounce, go yonder
Was she then mollified to be attended to later
Set out Sankara for an accomplished guru at last
For he in search of an ascetic tryst

Guru of gurus Govindapada
Sought after on the banks of river Narmada
Not a boy of toy trinkets, Sankara
Became to his credits early a Paramahamsa

Wonder was he then just eight years
An adept became seer of seers
Bespoken over era and era
His spirituality, the Advaitha

Travelled far and wide Sankara
Expounded Upanishads Sutras and Gita
Composed commentaries the Bhashyas
To this day spoken about in praises

An occasion Sankara for his old mother
Routed else way Purna river
Favourably for her daily ablution
En route near by his house on diversion

Sankara the giver of prosperity
Did once reward a lady of abject poverty
With golden gooseberries out of divine ability
On receiving the only fruit had that pious laity

One anecdote scaled up his power
Gushing forth once into floods Narmada river
Sankara encapsulated it in his vessel prior
Released it in the banks later

The intellectual acumen, Sankara scored high
Did he so win many debates to the sky
Defeated per tradition turned to be his disciple
Mandana Mishra and Vishvarupa, to cite notable

Far away by travelling though
Mother's sickness made Sankara at once go
His prayers, she visioned Hari and Hara
She demised; Observed last rites by Sankara

His way on to Vishvanath temple Kasi
Came upon an untouchable; Disliked he
Asked to move aside was the untouchable
Moved Sankara When questioned 'body or soul? '
'
Lord Siva was He to interrogate
Sankara's Advaitha meaningfully to relate
That body the matter to expire
For atman the soul we to aspire

That soul and God are inseparable
Body by itself separable
A peripatetic monk was Sankara
Preaching throughout his Advaitha

Reaching the ultimate, the Brahman
A truth of no time, space and causation
Was that Sankara enunciated
For sacerdotalism then to be much countered

To Kashmir was his next journey
Defeated there debaters many
'Sarvajna Pitha', throne of omniscience, a title
Conferred on Sankara in Sarada temple

To Himalayas Sankara continued
Joshi mutt and Badri temple were then constructed
To Kedarnath he finally proceeded
Merged in a cave with the Lord

At a time was religious chaos in India
Sects of superstition and bigotry over an era
Once glorious land of Aryan
Miserably in need of a super incarnation

Sankara's birth was timely
Did he upgrade righteousness greatly
Combated evil by spirituality purely
The foremost mastermind was he undoubtedly

Established Sankara four monasteries
Placed four disciples or Acharyas
To this day the lineage on duty
Spreading Sankara's Advaitha spirituality

Just thirty two Sankara short lived
A religious reformer even today admired
Profound philosopher most esteemed
Poet and preacher best gifted...